Tacking strip



Nov. 22, 1938. J 5 2 ,137,460

- TACKING STRIP Filed Feb. 28, 1956 INVENj'OR JAMES s. REID M 1/ 44. W1 1 M ATTORNEY:

Patented Nov. 22, 1938 aim UNITED STATES PATENT o ics 7 2, 1s':,4eo a TACKI NG S TRIP James S. Reid, Shaker Heightsxbhio, a-Ssig nor, by mesne assignments, to Thestandard Products Company, Cleveland, Oh io, atcorporation' of Ohio pplication February 28, 1936, Serial-No. 66,183

5 Claims. (arise-+40) H This'invention relates to improvements in tacking strips such as are used, for example, inthe automotive industryior securing upholstery and the like to the metal interior portions of automobile bodies.

, The general object of the present invention is the provision of improved tacking strips which are of simple and inexpensive construction so that they can bemade and sold at low cost, which are of durablecharacter, and which effectively perform their intended tack-retaining function. A morespecific object of the present invention is the provision of improved tacking strips which materially conserve the material of which they are madegwithout causing the strips to be sosmall in cross-section that they are difiicult to handleand without causing any decrease in the cross-sectional size of the tack-retaining portions of the strips.

Another more specific object of the present invention is the provision of improved tacking strips having longitudinal cores of tack-retaining material and of appreciable tensile strength fembeddedtherein, said cores enabling such strips to be more-rapidly extruded by the use of an extruding device, even though the material of such strips in which such cores are embedded is of little or no tensile strength.

3 Another more specific object of the present in- 'vention is the provision of improved tacking stripshavingchannel shaped sheet metal hold- Jers, said holders being adapted to. be welded or ctherwise suitably secured to the metal surfaces which are to be covered by upholstery or the like. v 7 Furtheriobjects of. the present invention, and furtheri featuresthereof, will be apparentfrom the following description of several forms of tacking strips embodying the present invention, reference being. had to the accompanying drawing in which i Fig. 1 is a perspective view of one form of tacking strip embodying the present invention; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the tacking strip of. Fig. 1 secured in a channel-shaped sheet metal holder; Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but showing another form of tacking strip embodying the present invention; Fig. 4 is a perspective View of another form of tacking strip embodying thejfpresent invention, said tacking stripbeing secured in another form of a channelshaped sheet metal holder; and Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing one Way of directly selcuiing' the tacking strip of Fig. 1 to a sheet metal member which is to be covered with upholstery or .thelikeu" a One material of :whichi the present improved tacking strips maybe made is a rubber compcund,;so lightened in weight by the use of suitable fillers, such as sawdust, leather dust, rags or thalikeythatthe presentstrips are not appreciably heavier than the twisted paper tacking strips which have heretofore been used. The

rubber compound of which the present tacking strips are made firmly retains all tacks driven into it, so that upholstery or the like may be readily and permanently secured to such strips by-means of-such tacks, as will be readily understood, i i i i V The present improved tacking strips are pref- .erabIy i rrnedQby.extruding the aforesaid rubberl compound into strips of thefdesired crosssectional size andofthe desired cross-sectional shape, any suitable extruding device being used for the purpose. ,The strips as formed are continuous in lengthand are subsequently cut into pieces or, the desired length 'Asindicated in the accompanyingfldrawing, the tacking strips preferably are oi uniform ,size'and shape in cross ,section', the strips being generally rectangular, as

shown c In the tacking strip 1 of Fig. 3 and in the tacking strip of Fig. 4 suitable cores are longitudinallyembedded in the rubber compound thereof, along the longitudinal center lines oi the stripsflthe'core 3 of strip I being locatedad jacentthe bottom thereof and the core 4 of strip Z being located'adjacent the top thereof.

The material of' which these cores are made is a one whichnot 'only has tack-retaining properties but :whichalso has a considerably greater tensile strengththan 'the rubber compound in which the cores are embedded, such as paper. 'Ihelatten property of such cores enabling the tacking .stripsil and 2 to be drawn through the extruding device,nand thus formed, at a much greater'speed than would otherwise be possible, suchdrawing; speed beingdetermined largely by the tensile strength of such cores.

each such strip are longitudinally grooved or recessed intermediate the generally rounded longitudinal corner portions thereof, the base groove or recess 6 of each strip being a relatively wide one and the side grooves or recesses l of each strip, there being one such groove or recess '1 in each strip side, being relatively narrow. The

top face of each strip, along the longitudinal may be reduced, without disturbing the efficiency of the strips, by providing the strips with suitable openings I0 extending longitudinally therethrough, and each of thestrips here shown is provided with a pair of such openings. As shown, the openings ll] of the tacking strip l2 of Fig. 1', ofthe tacking strip l3 of Fig.. 2, ofr'the tacking strip I of Fig. 3 and of the: tacking strip. ll of Fig. 5 are of circular shape; and the-openings. H) of the tackingstrip 2 of Fig.1. 4." are of!" generally triangular shape. The two openings of'each. of the present strips liein the same cross plane and are-spaced apart a suflicient distance to permit tacks to be driven into; that portion of the strip lying therebetween. In the tacking strip l of v Fig. 3, the openings [0- arearranged in-a plane above that of' the core 3 andin the tacking strip 2 of Fig. 4, theopenings ID are arranged in a plane below that ofthe-core 4.

The grooves or recessesB and! of the tacking strips and the openings. l0 thereof may be readily formed. in the strips during-their extrusion by an extruding device, the. shape of the die opening of. the extruding devicedetermining, ofcourse, the, cross-sectional. shape. of the tacking strips, as will. be readily understood;

Tosecure the present tacking, strips to metal surfaces. which are to. be covered with upholstery orthe. like, channel-shaped sheet metal holders may be utilized, such as the holder 16 of Fig. 2- or the holder ll of Fig. i. Thetacking, strip l3 of Fig. 2 is secured within the holder I6. by the inwardly bent upper edge portion. Ilia. of, the side walls of suchlholder, said sidewalliedge-portions-firmly engaging the longitudinal. edgeportions of the tack-receiving top. faceofisaidtacking-strip. The tackingstrip lotFig. 4 -is.pro.vided, within the grooved or recessed: portions of its sides, with outwardly extending; longitudinal ribs 20, one at each side; and suclr tacking strip-is secured within the holder: IT by-the-inwardly bent upper edge portion: [1a of. the sidewalls of such holder. As shown, the side walls of the holder I! are of lesser depth. than the side. walls of the holder I6, so. that the inwardly: extending side wall edge portions l'l'a of the holder lie' just above and in engagement with the side ribs 20 of such tacking strip 2. The'met'al' holders I6 and H, with tacking strips-secured therein, may be easily and conveniently secured, by spot-welding or the like, to any metal surfaces which are to be covered with upholstery or the like.

Another method of securing the present tacking strips to metal surfaces is to provide such surfaces with suitable clamping tongues, such as the. tongues 22 of Fig. 5. As here shown, two sets of tongues 22 are struck up from the metal member 23, for clamping, engagement with. both sides of the tacking strip It, the side grooves or recesses |0,of such strip enablingsaid tongues to be bent down over the lower longitudinal corner portions of such strip.

Other features of the present invention will readily occur tothose skilled in the art to which this invention relates, and various changes may be made in the tacking strips here illustrated without departing from either the spirit or the scope of this invention.

What I claim is:

1. A tack strip formed of tack-retaining composition and being of uniform generally rectangular cross section throughout its length, thereby forming top, bottom and side surfaces, the top of said strip being substantially flat to form atack-receiving surface, the sides of said strip between the bottom and top portions having longitudinally extending grooves to provide generally rounded corners between the sides and the top of. said strip, and the bottom having a longitudinal groove which extends upwardly from the bottom corner portions forming a substantially concave bottom surface and generally rounded cor.- ners between the bottom and: side surfaces, the grooves in the sides. being relatively narrow with respect to the groove in the bottom and being located at such a distance below the top that they do not weaken the upper portion of the strip in which the thicker portions. of: the tacks are em.- bedded, and the depth of said strip being such that tacks driven through. the upper portion. of said strip do not extend into the lower groove.

2. A tack stripformed of' tack-retaining composition andbeing of, uniform generally rectangularcross section. throughoutits. length, thereby forming top, bottom. and side surfaces, the top of said strip. being. substantially flat to form, a tack-receiving surface, the sidesof said stripbetween. the bottom and. top. portions having, longitudinally extending grooves.to. provide generally rounded corners between. the. sides. and top. portion; and the bottom portion. being longitudinally grooved to provide rounded corners betweenv the bottom and the side-portions, the grooves in the side-portionsbeing relatively narrow withrespect to. the grooves in the bottom. portion,. said. strip also having aplurality of openings located onopposite sidesof a. plane passing through. the longitudinal axis andthe upperand lower portion of said. stripmidway between the sides, said. openings andthe side groovesbeing located at such a distance below the topthat they do not. weaken the upper portion of the stripin which the thicker portions. of the tacks are embedded, andv said openings being spaced a suflicient distance apart to permit tacks to be driven from the topportion into the compositionbetween the openings.

3. A tack stripformed of tack-retaining composition and being of uniform generally rectangular cross section throughout its length, thereby forming top, bottom and side surfaces, the top of said strip being substantially fiat to form a. tack-receiving portion, the sides of said strip between the bottom and top portion having longitudinally extending grooves to provide generally rounded corners between the sides and top portion, and. the lower portion. being longitudinally grooved from its corner portions to provide rounded corners between .the bottom and side portions and a substantially concave bottom. portion, thegrooves in the side portions being relatively narrow with respect to the grooves in the bottom portion, said strip having a pair of openings located on opposite sides of a longitudinal plane passing through the axis and the upper and bottom portion of said strip midway between the sides and being located a sufiicient distance from each other to permit tacks to be driven from the top into the composition between them, said openings and the side grooves being located at such a distance below the top portion that they do not weaken the upper portion of said strip.

4. A tack strip formed of tack-retaining composition and being of uniform generally rectangular cross section throughout its length, thereby forming top, bottom and side surfaces, the top of said strip being substantially fiat to receive tacks, the sides of said strip between the bottom and top portions being provided with longitudinally extending grooves to form generally rounded corners between the sides and top portion and the bottom portion having a longitudinally extending groove forming rounded corners between the bottom and side portions, the grooves in the side portions being relatively narrow With respect to the grooves in the bottom portion and their apex being located below a longitudinal plane extending through the axis midway between the bottom and top portions, said strip having openings therein located on opposite sides of a longitudinal plane passing through the axis and the top and bottom of said strip midway between said sides and at such a distance below the upper portion of said strip in which the thick portions of the tacks are embedded that they do not weaken the upper portion of said strip, said opening being spaced from each other a sufiicient distance to permit tacks to be retained in the composition between them. v

5. A tack strip formed of tack retaining composition and being of uniform generally rectangular cross section throughout its length, thereby forming top, bottom and side surfaces, said strip comprising a substantially flat upper portion to receive tacks, the sides of said strip between the bottom and top portions being provided with 1ongitudinally extending grooves to form generally rounded corners between the sides and top portion and the bottom portion having a longitudinally extending groove forming rounded corners between the bottom and side portions, the grooves in the side portions being relatively narrow with respect to the grooves in the bottom portion, said strip having a pair of openings therein, the openings being located on opposite sides of a longitudinal plane passing through the axis and the top and bottom of said strip midway between said sides and below a longitudinal plane extending through the axis and sides midway between the top and bottom and being spaced at a sufiicient distance from each other to permit tacks to be retained in the composition between them.

JAMES s. REID. 

